JANUARY 2, 1939

WASHINGTON, Sunday—New Year's Day again. How quickly this week has passed. Every generation
has been in the House, from little Franklin III, to my husband's mother. All seem
to have gone about their various activities with mutual interest but no interference.
I think the White House staff deserves great credit for managing to meet all the various
demands with apparent ease and no friction.

In my last press conference I was asked for a New Year's message. It is certainly
difficult year after year to impose one's thoughts on any group of people, let alone
giving them to the press for the public at large. I feel, therefore, that all I can
do is to talk to you on the subject which has come to be of absorbing interest to
me during the past year.

For a few years most of us centered our interest on government responsibility to older
people. The tragedies seemed to be greatest for those citizens who had brought up
their families, or lived their lives in situations where there was never enough margin
to lay aside money for the needs of old age, or whose carefully accumulated old age
reserves were either wiped away by some circumstances beyond their control or proved
insufficient for their needs.

This particular phase seems now to have become part of the consciousness of the people
and, for the moment, I feel our thoughts and energies should be focused on the problems
of our young people. They are, themselves, making so much effort to meet these problems
that I think we should become interested in their efforts and do all we can to be
helpful.

I am conscious of the fact that many people feel that the problems of middle age are
not receiving sufficient attention. It is a problem which we must meet, but the most
urgent thing before us at the moment, I think, is to help youth evaluate the country
and the times in which it lives, so that it may start living in a way which will eventually
make it independent and satisfy its conception of what life should mean to it.

We have had a most delightful family staying with us. Dr. and Mrs. George Eusterman
and their five children arrived Friday from Rochester, Minnesota, and they seem to
have spent a very active two days seeing Washington. It has certainly been a joy to
have them. I wish I could always have around me as many nice young people as we have
had in the house the last few days.

I wonder how many of you will listen to the broadcast in which Mr. Peter Harkins tells
of his flight around the United States. This broadcast is sponsored by the Office
of Education in the Department of Interior and the Smithsonian Institution. He started
off to make his trip on December 28th and he will give a final broadcast on January
8th at 4:30 P.M. when this trip is over. Mr. Harkins interests me particularly because
he is only 22 years old and was driving a truck in a CCC camp two years ago. He was
able to convince the radio director of the Office of Education who visited the camp,
that he was capable of writing educational scripts and speaking over the radio, and
his success may point the way for other young people in similar fields.